Red Tail Boa
Heating
Proper heat is a must. The temperature in the cage should be kept between 80 and 85F with a basking area of about 90F. A basking area can be achieved with a heat rock or overhead ceramic heat source (recommended). With the size your cage should be, the overhead ceramic heat source is the way to go. Make sure if you use the overhead heat source that you keep the fixture outside the cage or place a wire mesh over the fixture to avoid burns. Keep in mind when using a heat rock you must cover the rock with a towel as there is a potential for thermal burns. Never allow the temperature to drop below 73F.
Also you should be able to keep the humidity at about 60 to 70%. This can be achieved in a number of ways such as a reptile fogger or even easier spraying your cage 2 to 3 times a week with water. Spray the bedding and the walls. The moisture combined with the heat source will increase the humidity and assist the snake in shedding and its overall well being.
Feeding
Feeding is one of the most exciting parts of owning a snake. Allow your snake to acclimate to its new surroundings for about two weeks. Red Tail Boas will start to eat “fuzzies” as hatchlings quickly graduating to mice once per week. After 6 months you can begin to introduce Rats. Full grown, your Red Tail will eat large rats and possibly small rabbits two or three times a month depending on the size of your snake. There are numerous opinions as to feeding live or pre-killed food. I prefer live food as it is fun to watch, however you must be aware that the food you introduce does have teeth and sharp claws and can harm your snake. Not much of a chance of it killing your snake but scratches and scars can occur. Never feed your snake in the same cage it lives. It will start to identify the opening of the cage with feeding time and make it harder to take it out of the cage. NEVER feed wild prey to your snake as they may contain parasites and other diseases.
Watering
Be sure to provide a fresh bowl of water at all times. This water will be used for both drinking and soaking so make sure that your snake can completely fit in the bowl without knocking it over. Soaking in the water assists in molting (shedding)
Handling
Handle your Columbian Red Tailed Boa as often as possible especially when young. This will ensure as your Boa gets older you will still be able to enjoy handling it. When fully grown I recommended that you never handle your snake while alone or allow young children to handle without close adult supervision. As with all animals Boas have a mouth and it is full of teeth. Although not often, Boas can and will bite. My 10 yr old was bitten by our 7′ Red tail boa. No harm was done, just a few bite marks. (Not the snakes fault, He did not wash his hands after feeding another snake we own.) Red Tail Boas, are large powerful constrictors that can attain lengths of 8-14 feet, (females grow to be larger than males) and weigh as much as 100+ pounds! A 10 foot Boa Constrictor is a much more powerful animal than a 10 ft Burmese Python. Please keep this in mind when you consider owning one of these large impressive beauties!
Enclosure
You can keep up to 2 babies in a 20 gallon tank for a while. A good rule of thumb is if the snake is stretched out it should be able to lay along the longest part of the enclosure and half way around the shortest part. If the snake is bigger then this then the enclosure is to small. You enclosure should either have a lid or a well latched door. An enclosure can either be a pre-made enclosure like a glass tank or can be a homebuilt enclosure. These guys can crawl out and get loose (bad idea if you have a small dog or cat as they may become dinner for the snake).
Suitable substrate
Use paper towels at first. These are easily and quickly removed and replaced when soiled and, with an import, will allow you to better monitor for the presence of mites and the condition of the feces. Once the animal is established, you can use more decorative ground cover such as commercially prepared shredded cypress or fir bark. Pine, cedar and aspen shavings should not be used as they can become lodged in the mouth while eating, causing respiratory and other problems. The bark must be monitored closely and all soiled and wet portions pulled out immediately to prevent bacteria and fungus growths. The utilitarian approach is to use inexpensive Astroturf. Extra pieces of Astroturf can be kept in reserve and used when the soiled piece is removed for cleaning and drying (soak in a solution of two tablespoons of household bleach in for each gallon of water; rinse thoroughly, and dry completely before reuse). Remember: the easier it is to clean, the faster you'll do it!
Proper heat is a must. The temperature in the cage should be kept between 80 and 85F with a basking area of about 90F. A basking area can be achieved with a heat rock or overhead ceramic heat source (recommended). With the size your cage should be, the overhead ceramic heat source is the way to go. Make sure if you use the overhead heat source that you keep the fixture outside the cage or place a wire mesh over the fixture to avoid burns. Keep in mind when using a heat rock you must cover the rock with a towel as there is a potential for thermal burns. Never allow the temperature to drop below 73F.
Also you should be able to keep the humidity at about 60 to 70%. This can be achieved in a number of ways such as a reptile fogger or even easier spraying your cage 2 to 3 times a week with water. Spray the bedding and the walls. The moisture combined with the heat source will increase the humidity and assist the snake in shedding and its overall well being.
Feeding
Feeding is one of the most exciting parts of owning a snake. Allow your snake to acclimate to its new surroundings for about two weeks. Red Tail Boas will start to eat “fuzzies” as hatchlings quickly graduating to mice once per week. After 6 months you can begin to introduce Rats. Full grown, your Red Tail will eat large rats and possibly small rabbits two or three times a month depending on the size of your snake. There are numerous opinions as to feeding live or pre-killed food. I prefer live food as it is fun to watch, however you must be aware that the food you introduce does have teeth and sharp claws and can harm your snake. Not much of a chance of it killing your snake but scratches and scars can occur. Never feed your snake in the same cage it lives. It will start to identify the opening of the cage with feeding time and make it harder to take it out of the cage. NEVER feed wild prey to your snake as they may contain parasites and other diseases.
Watering
Be sure to provide a fresh bowl of water at all times. This water will be used for both drinking and soaking so make sure that your snake can completely fit in the bowl without knocking it over. Soaking in the water assists in molting (shedding)
Handling
Handle your Columbian Red Tailed Boa as often as possible especially when young. This will ensure as your Boa gets older you will still be able to enjoy handling it. When fully grown I recommended that you never handle your snake while alone or allow young children to handle without close adult supervision. As with all animals Boas have a mouth and it is full of teeth. Although not often, Boas can and will bite. My 10 yr old was bitten by our 7′ Red tail boa. No harm was done, just a few bite marks. (Not the snakes fault, He did not wash his hands after feeding another snake we own.) Red Tail Boas, are large powerful constrictors that can attain lengths of 8-14 feet, (females grow to be larger than males) and weigh as much as 100+ pounds! A 10 foot Boa Constrictor is a much more powerful animal than a 10 ft Burmese Python. Please keep this in mind when you consider owning one of these large impressive beauties!
Enclosure
You can keep up to 2 babies in a 20 gallon tank for a while. A good rule of thumb is if the snake is stretched out it should be able to lay along the longest part of the enclosure and half way around the shortest part. If the snake is bigger then this then the enclosure is to small. You enclosure should either have a lid or a well latched door. An enclosure can either be a pre-made enclosure like a glass tank or can be a homebuilt enclosure. These guys can crawl out and get loose (bad idea if you have a small dog or cat as they may become dinner for the snake).
Suitable substrate
Use paper towels at first. These are easily and quickly removed and replaced when soiled and, with an import, will allow you to better monitor for the presence of mites and the condition of the feces. Once the animal is established, you can use more decorative ground cover such as commercially prepared shredded cypress or fir bark. Pine, cedar and aspen shavings should not be used as they can become lodged in the mouth while eating, causing respiratory and other problems. The bark must be monitored closely and all soiled and wet portions pulled out immediately to prevent bacteria and fungus growths. The utilitarian approach is to use inexpensive Astroturf. Extra pieces of Astroturf can be kept in reserve and used when the soiled piece is removed for cleaning and drying (soak in a solution of two tablespoons of household bleach in for each gallon of water; rinse thoroughly, and dry completely before reuse). Remember: the easier it is to clean, the faster you'll do it!